Graphical user interfaces provide a mechanism for users to submit input to software applications, as well as a way for the applications to communicate information to the users. In some instances, a user interface (UI) architect may produce a particular software application or a group of applications that have a certain feel or look that is characterized by a certain amount of consistency amongst the user interface elements comprising the user interfaces of the application(s). A specific aesthetic for the application(s) may be achieved by the user interfaces of the application(s) having user interface elements that are consistently shaped, colored, sized, and/or placed on the different user interfaces relating to the application(s). For example, a suite of applications from the same software manufacturer may each employ the same coloring schemes and user interface navigational controls for their presentation application, word processor application, and email client application in an effort to offer a consistent user experience to users of their applications.
While consistency across different user interfaces may be a goal of some UI developers in some instances, there may be a desire to provide some level of variation in some user interfaces of the same software applications. The level of variety may depend on the application and user expectations for the application. For example, some users of an internet browser may expect an ability to vary or personalize the look and feel of their browser, whereas users of, for example a customer relationship management application may not express much desire for personalizing the accounting application's look and feel. However, a user may want to or even expect to have some ability to personalize their user experience associated with the customer relationship management application since the ability to do so with other software applications (e.g., the internet browser they use).